A Cup of Joe

HungryJoe

HungryJoe

New member
Hi. My name is Hungry Joe. I've had a history of yo-yo-ing weight. I've had other blogs and forum identities on the internet, many diets and many successes and failures. But I figure, no time like the present to "start fresh".

Hence my presence on this here weight-loss forum.

I suppose if this were real-life, I'd stand up and tell you about who I am and what I do. I'd tell you that I actually already have other Journals on the Internet... but I just wanted something new and relatively anonymous.

You'd probably say to yourself "Wow this guy isn't even fat, what's he got to complain about?" See, I get that quite a bit. People seem to like the extra 10 or 15 pounds I've picked up.

I don't.

I look at pictures from about 3 or 4 years ago when I was really slim and had a flat stomach and a more defined face and I really want to get back there. I've never been the type of guy who envies the look of Sylvester Stallone or Arnold. Those musclehead types. I say, Good for them. No, I look at more the body type of surfers, or GQ models, or say somebody like David Beckham and that's what I wish I had. Even slender Rock N Rollers like Iggy Pop or David Bowie. That's more what I am after.

Ever since I was 20 I got interested in exercise and nutrition. For a while I was a vegetarian, but I was a terrible one. All I ever ate was Doritos. But I had a really active lifestyle and I exercised on top of that so I stayed pretty slim... about 140 pounds.

In 2001, I did not have a job for several months and I ate a lot of junk food and by the end of that year I was up to 170 pounds. But I determined to take it off, and I did. By Spring of 2003 I weighed 135 pounds and photos of me from that era show someone who is slender but also I had good muscle tone. I was really really happy with myself.

Long story short, I let bad habits creep into my life as far as eating and exercise and by the beginning of 2006 I weighed 170 pounds again. That is when my son was born and in the pictures I am shocked to see someone with such a pudgy face.

I struggled that whole year to lose weight. In the end, this is what it took : eating healthier foods... mostly vegetables, some fruits, lean proteins, good fats from fish and nuts and whole grains. That, plus I vowed to exercise every day. Sometimes maybe it's just an hour walk, maybe a DVD, or maybe the Gym when I have the chance. But every day I try to do AT LEAST an hour of something.

I lost five pounds and then stayed there at 165. So then I had to look at PORTION CONTROL. Even though it costs more money, I do try to buy snack sized things. I am really fond of South Beach products. Meals, snacks, etc... because they are low in sugar and they have whole grain plus they are portion controlled.

By introducing portion control to my daily diet and staying between 1500-1800 calories every day, I got down to 150. These days, that is my weight.

Sometimes I weigh 148, sometimes 153. This morning I was 152.

The trouble is, my middle is still soft. And , just like a chick, I have a closet full of clothes that will only fit me if I weigh 140 or below.

Am I happy that I shed 20 pounds in 2006? Of course!

But I know there is one habit that is standing in the way between me and my Ultimate Dream Goal Weight of 135.

I will be back later this morning to keep on rambling.

But for now I need to exercise.
 
Hey there!
Welcome to the forum :)
I know what you mean about not looking like you need to lose weight but knowing you're carrying around a bit more then you would like... Im in that situation too.
Congrats on your weight lost so far, im sure youll reach your goal!
 
More From Joe

Well, I'm back, and I see I've already gotten one commenter who was nice enough to congratulate me on my weight loss from last year.

Thanks so much!

Perhaps this will work out after all.

I have read many studies that say that the key to on-going weight loss and maintaining your weight is support. I really hope this forum will provide that in a way that I cannot get in other areas of my life.

Speaking of which, let me talk a little bit about myself.

My name is Hungry Joe, and I'm not always hungry really. I just thought that would be an interesting name. And I have this on-going battle with late nite "snack attacks"... um... that has been the last little bad habit that has pretty much stalled me out at 150 pounds.

Let me tell you something friends, you can eat all the salads you want and work out until you are blue in the face but if you are up eating three slices of chocolate cake and a bag of cookies at midnight I doubt if your abs are ever going to show up.

So that's my little problem. I eat my 1500-1800 calorie range during the day, I even have a little cup of hot cocoa before I go to bed. I feel quite content. But then about an hour later, I am up and something inside me want to eat. And not just eat... but FEAST! And I give in. Every night. I stuff my face with everything in the fridge, in the cupboards. I probably take in anywhere from 300-3000 extra calories in about 15 minutes.

Mind you, I used to do this during the day, too! It's called Binge Eating. And I have slowly done away with the daytime episodes. There used to be a time when it was nothing for me to polish off multiple pizzas in one sitting, or have a HUGE restaurant meal followed by MULTIPLE desserts. But, like I said... I did work on my food issues and eating habits in '06 and that is what enabled me to shed 20 pounds.

And I am thrilled by that. But I know this night-time bingeing must end. First of all, I think if I end it, I will drop back down to my "dream" slender weight of 135 quite easily.

But EVEN IF it was not connected to weight loss, the habit of waking up and gorging on food is a bad one, and embarrassing. How often have I eaten food meant as a treat for someone else?

"Have you seen my candy bar... and what happened to all the peanut butter?"

"erm... perhaps the Peanut Butter Trolls paid us a visit and made smores last night?"

Basically, I can tell you that since the end of October 2006, I have gotten up and eaten almost every single night. Sometimes I can make myself a cup of herbal tea, or cocoa (the non-fat no-sugar added type) or maybe even a small bowl of fruit... but 99 percent of the time it's stuff like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, crackers, cookies, ice cream and whatnot.

And let me explain. Because I know you're thinking "This guy is trying to eat healthy food and he's got all that in the house?"

I am married to Mrs. Joe Sprat. She can eat no lean. Well. Maybe on occassion. My wife is the type that has a body that is not thin but is not fat, either. Her weight does not fluctuate and she pretty much eats whatever she wants.

We have completely different diets. I love to eat veggies and fruits and stuff but I have trouble resisting night time sweets. She eats no veggies or fruits at all but rather waffles, diet coke, hamburgers and french fries are her standard fare but she eats very little of it and does not get up in the middle of the night to eat.

Although she very frequently has a bowl of ice cream just before bed.

I've discussed with her before the possibility of her not buying that kind of stuff but she feels that I am a grown man and should be able to resist eating junk food on my own.

So I just have to suck it up and deal with it. I will always be surrounded by junk food, in the house and out and about. So please don't even mention me not being around it. Oh and also my wife is practicing to be a pastry chef so there is always plenty of cakes and that sort of thing about.

But lately I've decided to look at it as a good thing. As far as the store-bought junk food, I've begun telling myself it's part of a challenge. Kind of like The Biggest Loser. Hmmm. but it's hard at 2am in the morning when a bag of OREOS is calling to you...

And as far as the practice cakes go, I'm telling myself I can't have any because they are for her clients. God help me if she ever has an order of brownies or a cake and I do give in and eat some and the next morning she finds part of her masterpiece is missing...

it sounds funny in a sit-com way but I don't think it would go down well.

Well. I've typed enough for now. That's it in a nutshell. I eat junk food at night. And I have to stop.

I am 152 as of this morning and I would like to have my 135 pound self, complete with abs, by this summer. That's June 21st in case anybody was interested.
 
Wasting Time on vacation

Well, I've been browsing these forums for about an hour and a half now, and I really like all the people on here. Mostly I'm hoping that this will give me something to do when I wake up in the middle of the night --- instead of eating.

I did mention that I try to keep my calories between 1500-1800 on most days? But then I binge and blow it. You know, I don't think for a guy who exercises moderately and stays active throughout the day, that is too low. No I think that is just about right.

But the way my brain and body just crave junk food at night, you'd think I was starving to death like some third-world unfortunate kidd-o. I always think about that: How there are people in the world with nothing at all to eat and here I am gorging myself on peanut butter sandwiches at 2am in the morning and then lamenting my failure.

Anyway. I'm on vacation right now. Friday was my first day and what is it about vacation that makes you want to snack if you are just sitting around all day? I dunno. But I've done well so far. Stuck to my healthy meals and snacks and in between I've had water, diet soda, and sugar-free gum to deal with the "snackies".

So... a little more about me. I'm in the military. I fix planes. I found an avatar of David Beckham to use. Actually I think it's a DB look-alike. I may at some point actually post a picture of my belly. Like I said, I'm not really fat... but I just feel kind of chubby and soft. I know I could lose about 15 pounds and look really toned.

I have been married for 7 years but diet and exercise are something my wife and I do not see eye to eye on. I have a one year old son. I love my family, I love the internet, I love my career, and I love mindless television.

Oh, and karaoke and UFC.

I don't think being a certain weight solves all your problems. But it certainly solves the problem of being fat.

Typical Menu for Hungry Joe:

Breakfast : bowl of Lite N Fit Yogurt with FiberOne and fruit, V-8 Low Sodium, sugar free instant coffee

Snack : south beach cereal bar, sugar free green tea

Lunch : Microwave Entree like Lean Cuisine or South Beach, apple

Snack : fat free cheese and lean turkey

Dinner : grilled chicken with fat free cheese, spinach and salsa, sugar free jell-o

Snack : cup of sugar free cocoa (NESTLE) with fat free whipped topping

I try to eat very low sugar, lots of lean protein, low and no fat dairy, whole grains but you see I still "treat" myself.

As you get to know me better you'll see I do things like compromise... what I call "Junk Food 2.0" . Like I know a South Beach peanut butter cookie is still junk food, but at least it's low sugar, tastes good and made with whole grain and no trans fat.

That type of thing.

I took my son to the Junior Museum today. Then to target where we bought a new DVD system for our car since somebody STOLE ours over the last weekend.

Now I'm going to take him to the Park.

He didn't nap today.

He'll be ready to drop by tonight.

I have such a great little boy. That's another reason I want to lose weight. I would rather he remember me being strong and fit than pudgy and winded.
 
tired and dissapointed

well. even after all my bluster about "starting over" and a "new day to diet" I did get up last night at about 11pm and binge again. Several peanut butter sandwiches, some cake, et cetera... and now this morning I weigh 154.

it's almost enough to make me wanna pack it all in and give up. especially considering how tired I feel this morning.

But I won't. Instead, I tell myself that if I can go a whole day... until midnight tonight... that'll be one whole day I went and did not binge. I think I'm gonna make today a lower carb day. Eggs and Boca burger and cheese for breakfast. maybe turkey and cheese for snacks. sushi rolls without rice for lunch. perhaps an apple. and chicken with veggies for dinner. basically no grains today.

and no bingeing tonight!

for my workout this morning, i'm planning on doing the Power 90 cardio routine from

when i first started doing DVDs for fitness, i kind of thought they were too cheesy, but i've found out there are really good ones and really bad ones. i have a whole collection now. for cardio, weight lifting and yoga. it's very convenient to be able to knock out a workout in your own home and be done with it.

i guess i should tell you i also struggle with injury problems. i seem very very prone to injure myself. first of all, for over a year i have struggled with a weird problem where my neck and shoulders and spine seem... painfully tight and compressed. everyday i am in constant pain and it is only through stretching, exercise and plenty of Motrin that I am even able to function. It is very worst when i first wake up and at the end of the day. I do not know what has caused this but I have been to two different physical therapists and they simply recommended some stretching which do everyday and more rowing type exercises to strengthen the back area.

But the good news is one of my doctors FINALLY ordered an MRI and I am getting that evaluated this week.

Today is grocery shopping day. Me and my son will be shopping for nice, healthy food. Perhaps I will share my list later on.

And finally for this morning, my wife is going on a trip this morning and the Boy and I are staying here for a few more days and then we will go meet her across state this weekend.

okay. so. eat right. move my body. stop bingeing.
see ya later.
 
Hey there,

Dont be discouraged, we all have set backs when we eat things we shouldnt :)

If you find yourself contantly hungry during the night that could mean you arnt eating enough during the day? Could you try say, upping your cals to 2000 a day and see it if stops you blowing it all at night?

Also could your nightly 'feasts' be as much a bad habit as anything else? Like a smoker who ALWAYS has to have a cigarette after work, just because thats what they always do.

Well I hope those ideas were some help, good luck!
 
Bad Habit

I think that, yes... my eating at night is a bad habit. I have always had it. from the time I was a little kid. I used to get up at night and eat bags of potato chips and cheese sandwiches.

I have experimented with different calorie levels and different types of dieting and no matter what, the urge is always there to wake up and eat. Whether it is hormonal or just something that has become fixed in my behavior pattern... it is not affected by WHAT I eat during the day nor HOW MUCH I eat during the day.

In fact, I had experimented with "Fat Loss 4 Idiots" and Tom Venuto's "Feed The Muscle, Burn The Fat" which both called for higher calorie levels than my current 1500-1800 per day and I was getting much fatter because I could not stop eating at night.

I also experimented with a diet called "The Warrior Diet" where you basically eat one large meal per day... this at dinnertime to see if that would work. Alas, it did not and I only found myself hungry and cranky during the day.

So I think I am actually on the right track now. Like I said, last year I really cleaned up my "during the day" diet and I stick to mostly lean proteins and veggies, accompanied by non-fat dairy, beans, nuts, fruits and whole grains. Then I moderated my portion sizes and I work out every day. That is how I got back down to 150s from 170s.

Now I just need to suck it up and heed the advice of Oprah, Bob Greene and countless other personal trainers. Stop eating at night and for heaven's sake, don't get up and binge on sugary carbs and fat.

But it IS A VERY HARD HABIT TO BREAK.

But I am hoping that in the future, when I do wake up ( and I do every single night... it's a pattern... almost one hour after I initially fall asleep... and then every two hours until it's time to get up) I can fight off that urge. Perhaps browse these forums, have some water or diet soda... maybe some sugar free gum? And then go back to bed??
 
still struggling...

You know, I started this new weight-loss journal with the idea that "this time things will be different". This time I'll stop binge eating, and in conjunction with my normal healthy eating habits and exercise routine, I'll finally drop this last 15 pounds and have abs by this summer.

But instead, I seem to be getting worse.

Last night, I did something I have not done in months and months and months and that is I had a binge in the evening. Fully aware of what I was doing. And I ate and ate and as a result the scale shows me at 156 this morning. You know, in the past 6 months I have been as low as 143. But here I am, gaining the weight. And it's not like I don't know why.

I pledged to try and stop eating in the evenings, but something inside me just wanted to gorge last night at about 8pm, as soon as I put my son down to sleep...

I wake up this morning feeling bad about myself, and tired and pudgy to boot.But it's my own fault.

Anyway. I won't give up. I've been slowly working on this for about three years now and it's too late now to just throw my hands up in the air and say "
forget it".

So today I am going to eat extra-lite. Just because I think it might really kick start me in the right direction. I don't want to be one of those people who gives up in the middle of the week and says "I'll start again Monday." So today is a very very light day, I don't normally eat so few calories. But like I said, I think it'll be a good thing. Sort of kick start me... and then tonight if I just do the hard thing, the right thing... and don't eat, don't binge. Maybe I'll be back browsing these forums? That was my idea but did I do it last night?

Noooooooooooo.

Oh well. As long as I'm alive I have a new chance to do things right as far as this weight loss thang is concerned.

Anyway. Meal Plan:

Breakfast : Yogurt and Fruit (150)
Snack : South Beach Cereal bar (150)
Lunch : tofu "smart dog" w ff cheese (no bread) and apple (150)
snack : 2 wasa crackers, 2 wedges of Laughing Cow Lite cheese, V-8 (150)
Dinner : Boca burger, can of green beans, Sugar Free Jell-O (150)

total 750-800

please keep in mind I do not normally eat so low, but I really need SOMETHING to get me headed in the right direction. One day of eating like this, especially after how much I ate last night, will not hurt and hopefully the scale will go down tomorrow morning.

Exercise for today will be Power 90 Sculpt! followed by stretches.
Not to mention I walk with The Boy and chase him around all day long.

Today's Plans : Walk to the Park, Play in the Park, Wal-Mart, Movie Time, Karaoke, and hopefully some nice evening TV.
 
HungryJoe said:
Oh well. As long as I'm alive I have a new chance to do things right as far as this weight loss thang is concerned.
Click to expand...

Thats the way to look at it :)

I did a similar thing last night, Id been doing quite well but then we got unexpectedly invited out to a BBQ, there was food and alcohol and yeah the diet went to pot... :(

The only thing you can do is try try try again :eek: Best of luck today!
 
Hey Joe,
thanx for posting in my diary I really appreciated. I am also one of the ones that are not "fat" just chubby...
Well, I used to get up at night when I was a teen, and eat stuff. But now I am just so tired, that I sleep through. Would that be an option?? Tiring you out so that you don't even wake up?? My swimming tires me sooo mjuch that I don't even wake up to pee anymore!!! And I used to pee lots of times per night!
Something else is flavoured chewing gum! I just have a lot of those in my pockets at all times and when I get the silly hunger (that is the hunger that is not really there...)i stuff some of them into my mouth, they have me chewing which is what my brain wanted, they have flavour so my tummy is happy and no cals!!!
Also do you have a nice sturdy jogger as a stroller?? I have one for my nannying kiddos and on Sundays I pack the "irish twins" in there (they are just 3 and just 2 years old) and we run like 20 to 25 minutes to the park and then back. That is great exercise, the kids love it and the money was totally worth it (their mom also runs with them, so it was not just bought for me to run with them!).
Another really tiring thing is roller blading. I have these amazing roller blades that I use almost never, but when I do I tell you no-one and nothing could get me outta bed once I am in there!!

And then there is always the last and most efficient option: make your wife tie you to the bed!! ;)!!!!!!!
Hope to hear from your progress soon, xxMilaxx
 
Morning Joe,
Ah, yes. I fall into the "not fat, just pudgy category." ;) I am glat to hear I am not alone in this - trying and trying but seemingly stuck. Good luck! This might sound totally ridiculous but when I was younger, I had luck leaving myself notes that say "diet" around the house. When I would want to go to the fridge, I would see the note and stop myself...
Jessica
 
Well, I've got about 15 minutes before I need to go do some "chores". I'm going to work on cleaning up my bedroom while I watch the movie "Manito". I think it's supposed to be one of those arty type films, it's by a Latino film-maker.

My son is asleep right now, taking a nap. I usually don't get to spend THIS MUCH time with him, but I am on vacation right now, and The Mommy is away visiting her sister... so it's me and the little Spud. And it's been really nice.

I'm in the military so it's great that right now I have an assignment that allows me so much time with my family. Some folks are not so lucky. I saw where they are extending Army Soldiers for 15 months at a time. I'm pretty liberal / democrat at far as Politics. I know it's touchy but I really don't think this administration gives a rats ass about the military, but for some reason, people think Republican = Good for the Military.

Anyway. Let me not get too in-depth here. I don't really want to cause a commotion over that.

I took the Boy to Wal-Mart today and he was really good. One of our relatives gave us a Gift Card for him so I let him walk up and down the aisles and pick out stuff. He got a few toys and a SpongeBob DVD.

One thing you'll probably notice is I'm not really what you'd expect from a young military guy. I fret about my weight, and I love hanging out with my family more than hanging out in a bar somewhere. Most dudes I work with plan their weekends around six packs (not the Ab kind) and NFL. I plan mine wondering where can we go as a family and have some fun.

The zoo? The mall? The park?

One reason I joined the military was so I could give my wife anything she ever wanted. I really can't afford to, but I try. She's such a great gal, though. I have to basically FORCE her to get stuff. She'll only shop at Payless, Wal-Mart, the BX and Goodwill. I think she feels badly sometimes that she does not have a job so she does not want to spend money.

But it's OUR money. We're partners. The only reason I can accomplish everything I want to in my military career is because she does everything else. She takes care of the boy and the house and all of the little stuff I can't get to.

Anyway.

There are SO MANY diaries on here, wish I had the time to just sit and read them... but even on vacation I really don't. I have things to do.

see ya later.
 
Hey Joe!

Well, i can most certainly relate to your late-night bingeing as this is an all too familiar habit of mine, as you would find if you read my thread [Eradicating the fear]. There is something about the evening that makes us want to eat and I have yet to determine if its just boredom or actual hunger. Some tips that have helped me in the later evenings:
1. Sugar free fudgicles- at 20 calories a piece, you can eat a whole box if you had to and trust me- they fill you up!
2. Sugar free jello- 10 calories, same story
3. Berries with sugar free cool whip- very satisfying and filling and less than 100 calories
4. Fiberone cereal- at 13grams of fiber and only 60 calories in a 1/2 cup, it fills you up quickly and at no cost:)
5. Warm milk (soy for me!)- no idea what the chemistry behind it is but i find that warm milk really fills me up late at night!
6. Caffeine free diet soda- it's all about the carbonation. I try to steer clear of soda but it does help when the hunger pains strike!

These are just a few things to try. Having the tempting foods in the house is extremely detrimental to anyone who is attempting to lose weight so perhaps speak to you wife again. I've spoken to my fiance about it [he too can eat everything and gain nothing] and he's willing to try to limit the 'junk' in the house in order to keep me on track! It's definitely worth addressing again- those people are called diet sabotagers:) Best of luck
 
Welcome to the WLF and your journal, Joe. I know there is a lot of support to be found here, I have been a member since the end of January, and I really enjoy my time. I only wish I had more time to post in everyone else's journals too.

It's great that you have already lost some weight, and you know what you want. Just keep thinking about that.

I too am a major pb fan. I love JIF, and I had to cut it out. If it's in the house, I eat it, so I purchased some Natural pb so there were no hydrogenated oils and less sat fats.

Good Luck to you on the continuation of your journey!
 
HI Joe!! Thanks for stopping by my diary! Your diary title is amusing as well!

So late night binging.... this is my problem as well. I love a good peanut butter and jelly sandwich in the middle of the night. Personally, I would like to know why getting up to go the bathroom in the middle of the night makes me hungry! haha... well, not hungry but if I'm up I want to eat.

I honestly think that if you're awake really late you're going to eat. It has nothing to do with being hungry it's just that it's late and your body is wanting something. I used to work the graveyard shift which is why I gained all the weight I've been working so hard on getting rid of. Ever since that job I've eaten in the middle of the night way past full.

You seem like a great person with a fantastic family! I'm sure you can get this under control and tame your late night binging! Don't you wish you could bottle the frustration you feel when you've binged so you could relive it before binging again!

Well Joe I wish you the best of luck tonight! I know you can do it! Use some of Crazybecka's ideas... those are all really good things to eat when the late night hunger monster appears!

:)
 
Hey, thanks for stopping by my diary. You seem like a really cool and caring guy (I loved how you talked about your wife) :) . People have already given you tons of great advice, but I guess mine would be try to binge on something that takes a while to eat. I get hungry at night (though not as badly as you) so I end up eating an orange pretty much every night. It takes a while to get the peel off and by the time I'm done with peeling it and eating it my craving has pretty much passed. It seems like your binges and cravings are a lot more serious than mine have ever been, but you can definitely beat it if you keep trying. My only suggestion now would be to try to binge on things that are very low calorie or take a while to eat, such as beef jerky, oranges, really chewy candy, or sunflower seeds in the hull. I know that is easier said than done because the point of a binge is to grab the nearest yummy thing and just shove it down your throat, but it could be a first step to beating it by trying to binge on these types of healthier or longer lasting foods. I'm hope to see you more around the forum :)
 
an off day?

So many thanks to the people who stopped by to offer suggestions. This is a bad habit I have battled for years and years. Only now I guess my metabolism is slowing and I'm not quite as active... so hence the weight gain.

So now it's my one last dietary challenge. Yesterday I felt kind of sleepy all day long so I tried to take a nap when my son did. I was trying to eat pretty low calories and I didn't feel very hungry until that nap... well I woke up at 2pm and felt ravenous... I know from experience that it is a trick my mind and hormones play on me... if I wait about 20 minutes it'll go away.... the trouble is that I just don't have the patience or the willpower to wait 20 minutes! So I started on one of my binges but guess what? Just then my son woke up so I had to attend to him instead of bingeing. So I finished out the day pretty well and all I had for the evening was the Sugar-Free Non Fat hot cocoa that nestle makes.

But then my son was up half the night crying which he never ever does.I am pretty sure he misses his Mommy. So I let him sleep in my bed and watch SpongeBob but he still cried off and on for hours and hours...

as a result, I slept in until 6:30 this morning and didn't really get in a "formal" workout.

But we are going to the mall so I can walk there and maybe later I'll do something more formal like a DVD.
 
Hey Joe...I just made my way to your diary because I loved the title! Anyway, here's one more suggestion to add the some of the great ones you've already been offered on the middle of the night binge problem.

First off, been there... done that... can totally relate. And, like you, even after I'd long worked out the issues that led to the other random daytime binge/overeating I still had a problem of waking up around 2 or 3 in the am, just starving. I decided that my body was just weird that way and it maybe it was true hunger not just something in my head I could think/trick myself out of...so long story short, I started making my last meal of the day around 11 pm., averaging around 400 calories, heavy on fiber for the bulk, usually including cottage cheese (slow releasing protein) and chocolate sf/ff pudding or natural cocoa (that's may be a purely "me" thing though, it has sleep inducing effect on me). Bottom line, I wake up hungry for breakfast in the a.m. but never in the middle of the night. I'm pretty sure having the super late last meal is what stopped the late night munchies - cause on the rare occassions I miss that last "feeding", no matter how much I've eaten through the day I will still wake up hungry and have to eat an apple or something to be able to go back to sleep.
 
First, hi and welcome to the forum!

Here is a trick I use--when I want to eat out of stress or boredom (or God knows why else). I tell myself, I can eat something after I drink a 16 oz bottle of water....of course, that usually that fills me up to the point that I no longer am hungry for anything else.

I don't have any advice for avoiding night time binging--I have not dealt with waking up in the night to eat....I'm usually conked out. But after reading the advice you've gotten from others, it sounds you have gotten some wonderful ideas!

Beth
 
Well it is about 9pm at night, and Ultimate Fighter is about to come on. I did get a chance to do my Power 90 workout at 8, after my son went to sleep. He didn't fight me very hard tonight. We read our books and he went to sleep. Hopefully it won't be a repeat of last night. I think he must have had nightmares or maybe he missed his Mom. Can't wait until he's older so he can tell me. At least I feel good about letting him snuggle with me all night and watch SpongeBob DVD until 2am.

Tomorrow I am also going to sleep until 6 or 6:30, as the difference it made in my energy levels today was amazing. I got this new CD that is supposed to help you sleep better. I'm trying it tonight. I'm on vacation right now but my normal work schedule is Graveyard Shift, but of couse on the weekends I go back to "dayshift" and every 4th week my work is "dayshift".

Anyway, I was having this enormous craving attack... just for anything... and telling myself it would be "okay" because of my workout.

Now I ate very well today. I'm not going to ruin it now. So I followed BethAnne's advice and had a big glass of water and now some sugar-free non fat cocoa, which is my bedtime snack anyway.

and my craving is passing away as I write this.

The trouble is, I KNOW that about an hour after I fall asleep, I'll have to fight this battle all over again. So that's about 11 or midnight I'll be back up. And then every two hours pretty much.

Every night.

Oh well. There are worse problems in the world.

Oh, yeah... a while back I mentioned that I have "spinal trouble". Well, my official MRI evaluation was today and the doc said something about my C5 and C6 being compressed and degenerated or whatever so he is a referring me to an orthopedist. I feel validated. To know that I have dealt with this for A YEAR before they ordered an MRI, though... I mean, I knew this wasn't all in my head. NOW my hope is that it can be effectively treated!

I think perhaps if I am awakened again tonite by those midnight snack demons, if I can put my right mind on, I may tell you about some of my funnier bingeing stories. Because truth be told, I do have a sense of humor about it. I'd like to stop it, sure... but as personal, embarrassing problems go it's pretty funny.
 
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